A few weeks ago it was my nine-year-old stepson’s “Spotlight” day at school. For you of advanced age like me, that’s what we knew as “Show and Tell.” William got to put together a poster with pictures of him as a baby, with grandparents, and playing baseball. He showed it to his classmates and told them a bit about his world outside of Mrs. Tricket’s classroom. He was also able to take a special item for the class to see. He chose our Beagle, Jackson.
Jackson was quite a hit – especially with the girls who stroked his ears and let him give them kisses. He put on a great act as a good dog for the 15 minutes I had him in the classroom! William told about Jack’s habits – his howling, his insistence upon owning the fuzzy blanket on the couch, and his poop-eating. That stopped the kissing in a hurry!
The Show and Tell session had the other kids asking lots of questions and truly knowing William better. They wrote him notes about what they’d learned.
Showing and telling has impact.
Jesus was the master of show and tell.
Matthew records a version of Jesus’ story in the Bible. It starts with His strange family tree, His birth to a virgin, His escape from Herod to Egypt, and His return to Judah (Israel) and the Galilee region. Then, we learn of John the Baptist – a cousin of Jesus’ – calling people to repent because God’s Kingdom is coming soon, and they’ll want to be “right” with Him. John gets the privilege of baptizing Jesus, and we see God’s acknowledgment of Him as His son in human form.
Immediately after His baptism, we hear about Jesus being tested by evil for 40 days. He overcomes evil with the Truth. Then…He begins to preach – the Kingdom of God is near – repent (turn around). In fact, the Kingdom of God had come to the earth through Jesus, though not all would recognize it.
Jesus begins to preach and the very next thing he does is start building a team. I think there’s something to learn here.
Matt 3:18-22 --
18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 20 At once they left their nets and followed him. 21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Why did they follow? We are not told, but I have to believe they surrendered their hearts to the truth of who Jesus is.
Where did they go?They went into a crash course in Show and Tell and Show and GO!
First – off to witness Jesus to heal the sick, then to listen to Jesus’ longest and perhaps richest sermon, known as The Sermon on the Mount.
It covered:
Matthew 5
- The condition of our hearts and God’s closeness to us (Beatitudes)
- Our impact in the world (salt and light)
- His role to fulfill the law (what is right)
- How the law points out sin – but it’s about our heart attitude – not just our actions
Matthew 6
- Living out faith by: giving to the needy, through prayer and fasting, by storing our treasures in heaven, and not worrying
Matthew 7
- Jesus’ students were challenged to not judge, to ask, seek and knock, to enter through the narrow gate, to discern leaders’ intentions, and to build on rock – the truth of Jesus as savior and king.
Moving on in Matthew's account, Jesus again SHOWS the disciples the truth of who he is by calming a storm, restoring a demon-possessed man, and healing a paralyzed man.
Then, he calls Matthew, the author of this story, who needed healing spiritually, as we all do!
All this is followed by more healings. And then Jesus sends out his disciples to multiple His efforts.
We get a rich pattern here of show and tell and show and GO!:
Jesus shows us who he is as truth teller and miracle worker
Jesus tells us to follow him (it’s not a question – but it is an invitation)
Jesus shows us who he is…
Jesus tells us Truth
Jesus shows us who he is…
Jesus sends us out to be his representatives. He tells us to GO!
When He said to fishermen Peter and Andrew, “Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of people,” they dropped their nets and followed him.
That took courage. He taught them with words and by demonstrating to them what it meant to love God and love others. That call “follow me” was to a profound mission to reach and to teach – to reach people who needed God and to teach them His ways.
Jesus asks us all to follow him…and he teaches us how through show and tell examples in the bible and through people he puts in our paths day-to-day.
To love God is to know Him by following and learning who He is and the beauty of His character. To love others is to complete the cycle that Jesus had with His disciples. “I’ve shown you my power. I’ve told you who I am and called you to a worthy mission of sharing who I am,” he says.
At the end of Matthew’s version of Jesus’ life – after Jesus has suffered, died, and risen from the grave, he tells his disciples “Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations…”
That’s our mission… to learn, grow, and go – through showing and telling -- and by showing and telling. As we show and tell of His glory, we expose people to His love and His power works through us to reflect a life of purpose.
Listen to Jesus' story, and then tell His story. Receive His love, and then show people his love.
For nine-year-old William, sharing his hobbies and his crazy dog with his class opened up his world to bigger, better-connected relationships – in a third grade way. But that’s how we all are drawn to bigger, better-connected relationships…through show and tell and show and GO!
